Architects
by snakepit
Summary: [Akoroku. Future Lemons. AU. Yaoi.] Childhood friends will grow up into something so much more.
1. Best Friends

Akuroku  
Kingdom Hearts ; Rated M ; Yaoi ; Lemons  
I don't own anything. As per, this was inspired by a song. "Architects".  
I said that "Sad Eyes" would be my last KH fic, but a lot of you requested I make more, so.  
There will be future lemons.

/ Chapter 1: Best Friends /

**Architects**

_Are there no fighters left here anymore?_  
_Are we the generation we've been waiting for?_  
_Or are we patiently burning, waiting to be saved?_

"Hey Roxas," the blonde father held Roxas's small hand in his, even if he had to crouch to fully grasp the toddler's small fingers. Roxas responded well for his age, being only 4. "I want you to meet Axel." His father guided him to the family that had just moved in next door. Mother and father were busy unpacking the car and had only offered a wave, while a redheaded offspring had trotted over happily.

"Hey Cloud!" Axel smiled at the man he had already met.

"Hey Axel, this is Roxas; my son. I told you about him." Cloud stepped aside to reveal the blonde hiding behind his legs.

"Yeah, I remember." The redheaded toddler grinned and laced his fingers to the nape of his neck. He was older than Roxas – only by 2 years – but he had learned more social skills, to say at the least.

"I'll leave you two to get to know one another – don't be shy, Roxas."

Roxas aimlessly extended his hands to catch Clouds as he pulled away and made his way back to their home. When that failed, Roxas turned back to his new neighbor with a slight pout and an interesting shade of pink on the bridge of his nose. He had never been good at meeting new people, shy as he is.

Strangely enough to Roxas, Axel offered his hand over the short hedge separating their yards.

"Wanna come over and play?" His emerald eyes closed every time he smiled, which confused Roxas. In fact, everything about this kid confused Roxas – from his inhumanely bright eyes, to his strange poster, fire-like long hair that fell over his shoulders. Weren't boys supposed to have short hair?

With a huff and one last timid glance back to his own house, he sniffled up what tears were coming on and took Axel's calloused hand. Axel had assisted him patiently with stepping over the small hedge, even if they could have just walked around. Once his short legs both plopped onto Axel's side of the yard, the redhead immediately spun on his heels with Roxas's hand in his and tugged him along to the front of his house, past the movers tall legs and quickly up the stairs until they stumbled into a semi-empty room.

The walls were painted red, his bed sheets were red and even his dresser and bed stand were red. The only thing that had any other color was the small TV in the corner and a box of toys scattered on the floor.

"Whatcha wanna do? I have toys and video games – what's your favorite game?"

Roxas shrugged and slipped his hand out of Axel's only to fidget his fingers.

"You don't talk much do ya?" Axel crossed his arms as Roxas shook his head. "That's okay!" He offered a reassuring smile. "I'm sure we'll be best friends anyway, won't we Roxas?"


	2. The Bully, Seifer

Akuroku  
Kingdom Hearts ; Rated M ; Yaoi ; Lemons  
I don't own anything. As per, this was inspired by a song. "Architects".  
I said that "Sad Eyes" would be my last KH fic, but a lot of you requested I make more, so.  
There will be future lemons.

/ Chapter 2: The Bully, Seifer /

**Architects**

_Let's raise the stakes,_  
_On the bet we made._  
_Let's decide to be the architects,_  
_The masters of our fate._

"_I'm sure we'll be best friends anyway, won't we Roxas?"_

Four years ago Roxas had said his first word in response to Axel.

"_Forever?"_

"_Forever!"_ Axel had promised.

And now, four years later, they had kept true to that promise. Proof enough; the two had found a way to communicate from their windows. It had been Axel's idea, to tie a string into those cans and somehow he managed to get one into Roxas's window, and one into his. Every night they'd mumble goodnight to one another and every morning they'd hold hands on their way to the bus, and until they had gotten into class.

This particular morning, however, was no good. Cloud was sick with something and Roxas had no idea what the nurse had called it. All he knew was what the doctors had told him. He should be a good boy, don't stress Cloud out or it'd make him sicker – and he wasn't allowed to stay home alone and he couldn't sleep overnight with Cloud in the hospital; so he stayed at Axel's. All night he had cried and the eldest had held him in his arms and soothed him the best a 10 year old could.

So this morning, Axel made extra sure to hold Roxas's hand extra tight – he even woke up early to make Roxas an extra PB&J for lunch and picked him a bright yellow flower from his mum's garden. It was no use, though. Axel had mirrored Roxas's frown as they got onto the bus and tried his best to brew up an idea to make his best friend feel better.

Once they had gotten to school, Axel held Roxas's hand all the way to class and pushed his desk right next to his. When the teacher tried to protest, Axel absolutely refused to move and even stood up to the teacher when she threatened to send him to detention.

"Roxas's dad is broken! That means he needs a dad until he gets fixed."

The teacher covered her mouth to stifle her giggles before she grinned and pat the red hair pulled back into a ponytail.

"Okay, okay, Axel. Calm down," she observed the teary blue eyes looking up at her, and then the stern emeralds. "You can sit next to Roxas – just pay attention and don't talk too much."

Axel agreed and sat quietly the entire time, holding Roxas's hand in his while the teacher droned on in the back of his mind. Concerned green met foggy blue before Roxas laced his small fingers through Axel's and leaned over to place a kiss on his friend's cheek.

For the first time in his life, Axels face had turned a darker red than Roxas's before he turned and stared out of the window. Anywhere but those blue eyes; as long as he could feel delicate fingers on his and he was sure Roxas wasn't crying, he felt he didn't need to face his friend anymore.

/ / /

"Recess, class – everyone line up." The teacher guided the class to the back of the classroom, where the exiting door was before she unlocked it and held it open for the unpiling students. Outside were the rest of the classes; 15 minutes of recess before lunch, and 30 after.

"Roxy!" Axel caught up with Roxas who had already walked off towards an isolated part of the playground. "Don't you want to play?"

The blonde shook his head sadly and shuffled his feet as he looked down at his white sneakers beginning to dirty. Axel's attempt at smiling failed all together as he frowned. He stepped forward to take Roxas's hand but Roxas pulled away this time. Blue met green again for only a split second before Roxas was harshly shoved to the ground with a painful thud and a soft cry.

"Oh, _Roxy_!" Seifer – the school bully, 3 years older than Axel. "Don't you want to play with your _faggot_ boyfriend?" He sneered the word to Axel before turning back to Roxas. The redhead had frozen in place, witnessing the older kid straddling onto his best friend and raising a fist. Only until he heard the horrifying crack of his best friends jaw did he react in pulling Seifer from behind.

He tried his best, prying and clawing at the oversized boy's shirt, grabbing his arms and pulling them back with all his might before they had a chance to land on Roxas, while Roxas squirmed and kicked to get out from underneath him. With a slip of his foot, Roxas had kicked Seifer right in the throat; earning a curse – but enough time to slide out from underneath him and stumble backwards.

Seifer rose and held onto his throat while Axel backed away from his towering classmate. He glanced around to find a teacher or another student; but suddenly remembered that he had followed Roxas into the most isolated part of the playground, behind trees and bushes. His heart raced in his chest as he darted forward and in front of Seifer, reaching out for Roxas's hand until he was spun around and lifted by the collar of his shirt.

His height was definably put to shame compared to Seifer, and he internally cursed himself for that and being so damn weak. His skinny arms swung as hard as they could until his hands had been restricted to holding onto Seifer's arm due to lack of air.

"Let him go!" Roxas thrashed underneath Axel and swung his fists against Seifer's stomach until again, with the slip, his hand ended up slamming right into his groin and brought the giant toppling over. Axel had ungracefully fallen onto Roxas, sending them both to the ground before Axel pulled himself up and caught him breath. While Seifer had been down and groaning about, Axel took Roxas's hand and forced him to his feet before dragging him back to the school grounds where they were instantly greeted by a teacher.

The school staff guided both of them to a nurse where Roxas was given ice for his lip and jaw; Axel had been given ice for the bruising on his back from where he had toppled onto Roxas. Once the nurse had gone to call Axel's parents and Axel had finished explaining what happened, they sat alone on a small bed in the nurse's office.

"I'm sorry I didn't help you." Axel crossed his legs and faced Roxas, looking at the small blonde through his eyelashes.

"You did." Roxas mumbled against the bag of ice. He tried to smile, but winced at the stinging pain instead.

Axel shook his head and took his friends hand in his again. He enjoyed the feeling of Roxas's hand in his, always. He never wanted to let go, and by the way Roxas held his hand back, he knew Roxas didn't want to let go either.

"Hey Roxy," Axel took Roxas's other hand, the one that had been holding ice and brought it between them until he was softly tugging the blonde closer. "My mum always does this thing with my dad…" he bashfully says and meets Roxas in the middle until their noses pressed together. "She says people do it when they love each other."

Wide blue eyes curiously watched closely as Axel tilted his head and pressed his lips to Roxas's. Unresponsively, neither of them shaped the kiss, so Axel pulled away with furrowed brows.

"I don't think that's right." He tilted his head to the other side and puckered his lips a bit before placing them back to Roxas's. After seconds, Roxas had mimicked him and puckered his own lips. Eventually, after minutes and repeated tries, Axel had cupped both of Roxas's cheeks and shaped their kiss more deeply until he felt it was perfect. He was sure it was by the way it sent a foreign chill down his spine; and the whimpers from Roxas made him assume he had felt the same.

"What are you two doing!?" Roxas shoved away from the redhead and quickly turned around to face the nurse from before; only her smile had been replaced with a silent scream and look of horror.

"No!" She tugged Roxas away from Axel and waved a finger in both of their faces. "Boys don't kiss boys! That's bad! I'm going to tell both of your parents!"

"But my mum says –"

"I don't care what your mother says! It's _wrong_!"

Axel looked to Roxas with a plea in his eyes, but Roxas hadn't had enough time to return the gaze before he was being drug away and towards the phone where Cloud would be called – while sick, in the hospital. Roxas worried that while the nurse drug him to a chair beside her desk and forced him to sit down while she punched numbers into the phone.

"Cloud will be mad and it's all your fault!" Roxas brought a hand to his eyes to paw away the falling tears and turned to face Axel who had stumbled after him. "He's going to get sicker now and it's all – your – fault! I hate you!"

Roxas pulled the flower Axel had given him from earlier in his pocket and in a sad attempt, tossed the weightless thing in Axel's direction before balling up in his seat. Axel picked it up from the floor before, in the longest time, he had felt his chin quiver and his eyes burn.

For the first time in a long time, he cried.


	3. Childhood Trauma

Akuroku  
Kingdom Hearts ; Rated M ; Yaoi ; Lemons  
I don't own anything. As per, this was inspired by a song. "Architects".  
There will be future lemons.  
**It gets worse before it gets better.**

/ Chapter 3: Childhood Trauma /

**Architects**

_Do you still believe in all the things that you stood by before?_  
_Are you out there on the front lines, or at home keeping score?_  
_Do you care to be the layer of the bricks that seal your fate?_  
_Would you rather be the architect of what we might create?_

"_He's going to get sicker now and it's all – your – fault! I hate you!"_

_Your father is in a better place now. We're sorry, the doctors did all they could… you're going to live with us, now, Roxas. You can stay in Axel's room until we can organize the guest room._

Axel looked to the right of him, to his best friend who sat beside him another four years later. He was busy in conversation with his new best friend; Sora, who sat at the lunch table with them every day now, along with their other friends… Demyx and Namine. There were more, but most of them didn't make it to school as often as they should. Needless to say, they had fallen into the wrong group of kids. To Axel's regret, he didn't stop Roxas from doing the drugs – he didn't stop Roxas from burning his own house down, even. He said he did it to forget, and who knew a middle schooler could get drugs so easily?

"_Do you really hate me Rox?" _

"…_It's not really your fault."_

"_Are we still friends?"_

"_Forever."_

"Earth to Axel!" Namine had leaned over the table and snapped her fingers in the redheads face until he came to. He shook his head before looking from Namine to Roxas.

"What?"

"We're going to go to this party tonight, you coming?" Demyx asks.

Axel looks to Roxas for some kind of confirmation, nodding when blonde brows rise in a way they always have when he wanted Axel to say yes. Demyx does he usual cheer while Namine winks to Roxas, and Axel, as per, tries not to steam over the two blondes sharing some kind of mental-fuck.

"I hope Zexion is there." Demyx sighs and plops his head to the table with a thud.

"Are you a faggot now?" Roxas nudges Axel as some kind of request to laugh, as if it were some kind of inside joke of what they had been through. Instead he and Namine share an elongated fit of giggles.

After the mishap with the nurse Axel's father had practically beaten him to a bloody pulp and demanded that Roxas couldn't be alone in the room with him until he learned the right path. With gritted teeth, Axel had faked all along that he had just done something stupid, a silly mistake. He didn't know what he was doing; to his father's knowledge, and as much as his mother wanted to intervene, there was nothing she could do but clean up the messes his father left on him.

"_You still gay?" His father would ask every day he came home from school._

"_No, sir." He'd calmly reply to avoid another beating. _

"I need some air," Axel pushed his untouched tray away before rising from the lunch table. "Demyx, want to come with?"

Demyx nodded, catching glimpse of Roxas's glare before rising from his own seat and following the redhead outside of the café, past all the judgmental looks and students murmuring about them, their appearance, who they were – as if they really had known who they were.

Seifer was the main issue. The one who'd corner Axel only, the one who had taken advantage of Roxas all for some drug deal – and that was the problem… Roxas was only aroused by a man if there were drugs involved. He had turned into something Axel completely couldn't stand. He loved Roxas, sincerely, and Roxas was too stupid to see it; or so he'd tell you.

"Are you okay?" Axel looked down to Demyx. Even for a 14 year old, he was damn tall – almost 6 feet tall already.

Demyx nodded as they walked past the short vegetation until they had made it into the isolated part of the outside grounds. Where no one wanted to go, deeper into the woods outside of their school until you couldn't even hear the whistles of the track team practicing in this cold afternoon. Where the sun couldn't shine past the ingrown trees and moisture still sat on the ground.

"It sucks," Demyx's lips twisted in a pity smile. "Being gay, I mean. It sucks. It just sucks a lot."

Axel didn't nod or make any attempt to hold any acknowledgement. His eyes only softened before he blinked his vision towards something other than Demyx's quivering chin and glossy eyes. He did all he knew how to do.

With a sigh, he closed the distance between them and placed a hand on Demyx's cheek, the other wrapped around the small of his waist until there was no room left between them and their lips collided in a familiar kiss they had secretly shared for almost a year now.

He clenched the back of Demyx's shirt like he had done to Roxas four years ago, when he had been beaten; reaching out for something, anything to grab and bring him back to safety. He did that to Demyx, brought out all of his emotion and practically breathed it in himself. He took the pain for Demyx and took the fall for a broken heart.

"Woah."

And like before, Demyx shoved away from Axel at the abrupt voice. Axel saw a glimpse of a younger Roxas in that moment; face horrified, shocked, confused – and then it all came back to reality. He looked past Demyx to meet that same face of his best friend, only this time Namine had been latched to his hip.

"You're fucking gay?" Roxas spat the words.

Axel's chest heaved as he tried to catch his breath and think of something reasonable to say. He shook his head in desperation, looking from one blonde to the next until his eyes completely twisted shut in frustration and his hands were matted in his red hair.

"Fuck – Rox, no, look I can –" He took a step closer only for Roxas to take one back.

"No, Axel – don't even come near me. Just… piss off, alright? You know that shit is wrong."

"_Boys don't kiss boys! That's bad! I'm going to tell both of your parents!"_

"You don't seriously believe that shit, do you Roxas?" The plea in Axel's eyes had returned. "Rox, I'm your best fucking friend! I have been for 8 years." He quickly pawed at his nose and eyes before they started running.

Roxas shook his head, taking Namine's hand in his. "You've got another friend now, yeah?" He lazily pointed to Demyx whose jaw hung open and eyes wide with confusion. He pulled Namine with him as he spun on his heels and began walking from where they returned. A desperate shout caught in Axel's throat that came out as a sob he caught in his hand.

"Ax, I-I'm sorry."

Axel shook his head but watched Roxas for as long as he could until he was hidden behind vegetation.

/ / /

Axel had walked home as slowly as possible that afternoon. His eyes were still swollen from his fit in the woods; after Demyx had left, he had done everything he knew how to get out his anger – from crying, to punching and kicking fallen trees, screaming – anything. So now, his knuckles were crisp from crimson and his eyes were bloodshot, and his vocal chords strained. His usual flat red hair was tangled and frizzy and his clothes were dirty from sitting in the woods the rest of the day.

Now, though, opening the door to his home was the most frightening thing he knew how to do. His hand shook as he grabbed the knob and slowly twisted it open; every second had lurched his stomach tighter until he was sure to lose what little he had eaten today.

His father was the first one he saw, sitting on the couch reading the newspaper as usual, then his mother, in the kitchen clipping coupons – and Roxas was nowhere to be found. This eerily relieved him, so he sighed a breath of relief.

"You're home late," his father spoke to the newspaper and glanced to his watch. "It's 6, where's Roxas?"

"I don't know." He lied. He was at the party, getting drunk and high.

"Text him for me when you get the chance, love." His mum chimed in with a smile.

Axel nodded, lying again, before he hurried up the stairs and quickly slipped into his bedroom. Once inside he exhaled deeply and regained his head before collapsing onto his bed. With his finger he traced over the markings he and Roxas had made when they were kids. Dumb, cliché things: "Friends 4evr" and "I luv u Axel", "I luv u 2 Roxy". It was all he had left of that innocence he had fallen in love with.

He shook his head at the thought; no, he hadn't fallen in love with Roxas… had he?

Rolling onto his back he sighed again and stared at the ceiling before pulling out his phone. It'd be getting late soon… he couldn't cover for Roxas forever, and even if he could, why should he?

No new messages. Figures.

With a groan he quickly dialed in Roxas's number and put the phone to his ear.

"Ax – el?" Came the familiar voice, but in a whisper.

"Roxas?"

"Axel…" A sob broke loose on the other side. "I n-need… help."

"What's happening? Roxas?"

"Ax… I'm sor –"

"Rox?" Axel held the phone to view; the call had ended. "Fuck!"

He tried redialing the number to no avail. In desperation he quickly texted Namine and Demyx for the party details and after seconds that felt like hours he finally got a response from Demyx with the address on it.

Again, he took a deep breath and collected himself before walking down the stairs and tried to casually walk out as if he were taking his daily walk. Luckily for him neither of his parents questioned him, so he quickly began his sprint. Even if the house was an hour away by walking; he would get there – Roxas needed him and he'd be there.

Even if by the time he had gotten there his legs felt like they'd give out and his entire body was sticky with sweat. The sun had already gone down so the house wasn't hard to find. Kids were spread out on the lawn, whooping like idiots and neon lights flashed in the downstairs of the house. Axel took a moment to scan the entire house from the outside.

Once he had caught his breath he trotted towards the house and snaked past the crowd of dancing drunks. Desperately, he scanned the room for Roxas; near the bar, the kitchen, the dance floor – face after face and none were Roxas's.

His stomach twisted once he had finally stumbled to the stairs and quickly started making his way up them. His legs felt like they'd give out any minute once he made it to the top and he groaned in pain as he forced himself to stay upright. He checked every room; bathroom and bedroom after bedroom until he had come to the one on the far right.

He dreaded to open it; part of him already knew what was on the other side. It wouldn't be the first time something like this happened, and yet when he opened the door and found Roxas lying completely naked on the bed his heart still tightened in a way he couldn't bear. He might have been nervous to see such a sight, of Seifer hadn't been on top of his view.

"What the fuck?" Axel spit out the only words that registered when looking at Roxas's completely lust-driven eyes.

"Get the fuck out!" Seifer bit back as Roxas's head lazily lolled to the side. Foggy blue eyes watched Axel and at this moment he couldn't read them. He didn't know if Roxas was in danger – he couldn't tell if it was even Roxas anymore.

At this moment, all he knew was he was taller than Seifer now and that was enough to encourage him to charge at him. He relished in the painful grunt the older teen had made when falling underneath him before he raised a fist, throwing punch after punch to Seifer's jaw; just like he had and would have done to Roxas years ago.

"Axel, stop!" Roxas wrapped the sheets around him and desperately tried to pry off the redhead, yet all of his efforts had gone in vain when he was shoved backwards; luckily falling onto the bed again. It wasn't until Seifer was completely unrecognizable from all of the blood pooling on his face did Axel finally stumble to his feet.

When the eldest turned to Roxas, he had cowered in nothing but fear – fear that Axel would start beating him next. To his surprise, he had held out a familiar hand.

"Come on," Axel growled the words and wrapped his calloused fingers around Roxas's soft hand. "Let's go home."


	4. Unwanted Company

Akuroku  
Kingdom Hearts ; Rated M ; Yaoi ; Lemons  
I don't own anything. As per, this was inspired by a song. "Architects".  
There will be future lemons.  
Don't worry; out of all my depressing fics, _this_ one won't be sad.

/ Chapter 4: Unwanted Company /

**Architects**

_Our heroes, our icons have mellowed with age.  
Following rules that they once disobeyed.  
They're now being led when they used to lead the way._

"_Let's go home."_

"I can't wait to move out," Axel mused as he and Roxas sat in the crowd, surrounded by their classmates and all wearing the same blue gowns that symbolized none other than: _graduation_. The only word that could bring Axel to feel like he could piss himself.

Roxas glanced at him, his lips in a straight line until Axel met his stare and they both broke out in laughter.

"Shh!" A teacher nearby scolded.

Axel rolled his eyes, sharing one last smile with the blonde before they silenced and listened to the speech their principle was resisting. Well, listening wasn't the right word. It was more like blankly staring at the shine off of the principles head while he was lost in complete thought.

_Now it was time for college, moving out, getting a job… wow. _

And Roxas – Roxas was still here, after everything they had been through. The night after he had found him with Seifer he snuck him back in the house without Axel's parents seeing him and covered for him. After that, Roxas had cried harder than Axel had ever seen him cry. He was sobbing, clawing at Axel's back for dear life and refused to let the redhead go. He apologized so many times that Axel had lost count.

Axel met Namine's glare from across the room to remind him.

Of course, Roxas had lost Namine the day they returned to school and Roxas had taken back what Namine had seen. She proceeded to spread across the school that they were both faggots. It bothered Roxas at first, to the point Axel had to keep him away from sharp objects for the longest. Axel had cared none the least what people thought of him; but Roxas… he had gotten into so many fights for Roxas. But that was all about 4 years ago.

Things had gotten better over time though. Roxas adapted without having a father, accepted Axel's parents as his own and eventually the tension between all four of them had died down when Axel's twin brother was born; Reno. Reno would be 2 years old soon, and he was the glue that mended their family together. Roxas even says that Reno was inspiration enough to quit drugs, and he did, to Axel's relief.

And now; he was graduating with Roxas. This almost made failing a year worth it, now that he could be with his best friend.

"…and enjoy the rest of your lives." The principle closed, waved and walked off stage. That was the only thing getting Axel's attention back as everyone around him stood and generically threw their caps into the air. He, however, would have stayed put if it weren't for Roxas tugging him off of his feet and pulling him into a tight embrace.

"Come on you two, knock it off." Kairi, their new friend, nudged between them with a grin. "We're going to go get ice cream, you guys wanna come?"

"Who's 'we'?" Axel skeptically asked. All of his friends had already graduated, which meant it would be _their_ friends.

"Sora and Riku." Kairi crossed her arms and broke gazes before adding, "And Namine."

"No." Roxas answered quickly. "No thanks. Not with that total bitch."

The girl pouted. "Come on, Roxas. You can't hate her forever… Axel, please?"

Axel shrugged. "I don't go if Roxas doesn't."

"I know!" She groaned. "Roxas, come on. It's graduation day. Start fresh!"

The argument lasted for minutes. Roxas had tried to walk away, Kairi pulled him back, when Kairi tried to walk away, Axel pulled her back – not wanting to leave anymore mends undone, and when Roxas had finally caved in with a huge, overdramatic and long sigh, Kairi practically leapt.

"We can take my car!" She grinned, keys in her hand. That meant when she began walking away, the two had to follow her. And with a roll of their eyes in unison, they did. You could never lose an argument with a woman; Axel had come to that conclusion.

After undressing from their robes, they drove silently and Axel stared out of the window the entire time. Roxas occasionally glanced around the car, opening his mouth and drawing a breath as if he'd speak, only to exhale and look out of the opposite window. Never had the two boys been so relieved to see the ice cream shop.

"Roxaaas!" Sora shouted from one of the tables outside. He sat in Riku's lap, obviously earning discomfort in the blonde, but he neverminded it quickly as he sat at the table. Axel couldn't help but notice as he sat next to Roxas and Kairi sat next to Riku and Sora.

"No hug?" Riku asked to Kairi, and Sora looked to Roxas in seems of asking the same question.

"That's cold, Roxy." Sora pouted.

He chuckled sheepishly before shrugging. It was painfully obvious how uncomfortable he was for his best friends to be gay. Even once he had a fit about all of his friends being gay; not that anyone could blame him. Literally almost all his friends _were_ gay, and considering his trauma, it must have been…

"Hey."

They all looked up from the table.

Namine stood, arms crossed, in a short white dress and her platinum hair in a messy bun.

"O-oh," Sora looked to Riku who shrugged; then to Roxas who rolled his eyes; then to Kairi who glared at him. He skittishly returned gazes with Namine. "Hey, Namine."

"Hey Sora," she wrinkled her nose and Roxas could hardly stand it. Just her being there drove him crazy.

Axel could still remember word for word, breath for breath – everything she said.

"_Don't fucking touch me!" She snapped at Roxas, drawing her hands away from him. "You're friends with that… __faggot__!" She spit the word with venom. "I heard about you fucking Seifer! God, all of you are faggots!"_

And she slapped him, in the middle of the hallway, after making sure everyone had heard her every word.

Axel shook with anger while watching her sit next to Sora, who had slid from Riku's lap and into a single chair.

"Are we gonna be fucking awkward about this?" She bitterly chuckled. All eyes locked on her and no one said a word. "Wow, I can cut the tension with a butter knife."

"Nami, it's okay." Kairi smiled.

"Yeeea-h," she chuckled. "Sure."

Kairi frowned, looking from Namine, to Sora and Riku who awkwardly glanced at Axel and Roxas who were staring at their laps and hadn't said a word. With a sigh, Kairi leaned back in her own chair and crossed her arms – which Roxas knew as a sign of her giving up.

"Why're you such a cunt?" Sora mumbled without looking up and all eyes had gone wide, except Roxas's.

"Excuse me?" She chirped.

"Are you deaf?" Roxas interrupted. "Why're you such a fucking cunt? Who even invited you?"

She scoffed. "Kairi, you dickhead!"

"Must've been out of pity." Riku stood and looked to Kairi. "Sorry, Kai. Not feeling it." With that, he took Sora's hand and drug the brunette from the display and into the shop. _Out of sight, out of mind_ was Riku's usual quote, so everyone understood.

"Oh wow." Namine rose from her seat and placed her hands on the table, leaning dangerously close to an already-steaming blonde. "Roxas, how about you stop ruining my fucking life?"

"_I_ ruined _your_ life?" Roxas could laugh.

"Yeah?" She cocked her head. "You've already fucked the entire school, but you can't even fuck your best friend who's obviously in love with you. What a sad life you live. Are you really gay, or do you just do it for the money?"

"That's enough." Axel calmly interrupted. On the inside, he was boiling.

"No, I've got more," Namine wickedly grinned. "Tell him how you fucked Demyx."

Axel's mouth dried and his eyes widened along with Kairi's.

"Namine that was a _long_ time ago!" Kairi defended for Roxas. "It was a mistake, stop starting stuff!"

Roxas looked like he might have cried as his head fell. He glanced to Axel; his eyes seemed to be apologizing but Axel was stunned, his eyes wide and his mouth open as he watched the two girls.

"So what? Still, he's a pretty big whore!"

"It was a mistake, he said so himself!" Kairi tossed back. "Axel wasn't supposed to know!"

"Doesn't! Matter!" Namine retorted. "You're all hating me and you –"

Sora had practically slammed through the door hard enough for it to slam against the walls. Everyone silenced and all eyes locked on him as he crossed the lot, Riku desperately following behind him and making sad attempts at tugging his arms back. Everyone wandered: Why was _Riku_ holding _Sora_ back?

Until Sora stormed right up to Namine, raised his fist and punched her.

* * *

Author Notes; this is where the years stop skipping. Next chapter will be exactly where this moment left off. c': And oh, the highschool drama. Sweet, sweet, drama.


	5. Height Difference

Q: Why did you keep using the F bomb if you're a "supporter" of gays?  
A: I kept repeating the word "faggot" to get you riled – and it worked, you felt an emotional pull towards the situation the characters were facing, so when the outcome of Sora punching Namine came along, you felt a little victorious.

* * *

AkuRoku  
Kingdom Hearts ; Rated M ; Yaoi ; Lemons  
I don't own anything. As per, this was inspired by a song. "Architects".  
There will be future lemons.

/ Chapter 5: Height Difference /

**Architects**

_Make no mistake; we are not afraid  
To bear the burden of repeating  
What they're thinking anyway._

"Sora!" Kairi sprang from her seat and folded the unconscious blonde into her arms. "Namine! Oh my God, call an ambulance! She's not waking up!"

"She's knocked out," Riku crossed his arms before sighing through his nose. He shot a glance towards Sora whose face was still beet red, his small body still trembled with anger and unreleased tears were sitting on his lashes. With another sigh, Riku shook his head and took the brunette into his arms.

Roxas sat still and motionless in his seat, watching the small display of a few people gathering around Namine. Her nose and the crook of her lips were bleeding, she wasn't waking up. Roxas didn't much care. Axel however, was panicking – silently. Roxas knew that just by looking at those usual narrow eyes turned into complete wide orbs and his legs were trembling as he stood.

"Why did you do that, Sora?!" Kairi swatted the two away when they got too close.

"Me?! Didn't you hear what she was saying?!" Sora was practically yelling, "I could hear her from inside the shop! She was embarrassing everyone." He finished with a shift of his weight and a final huff.

Kairi fell silent and only started speaking again when a man came up and started questioning them. She asked to see Sora, to question him and get his information; all of them stayed silent until the man came up to Roxas.

"Could you tell me your friends name?"

"Why would I do that?" Roxas retorted.

He glared, "Can I have all of your names?"

"Tch," Roxas glanced to Axel, who silently stared down at him. "Fine."

Roxas stood, shooting an omen of a look to everyone before meeting beside Sora. Before Sora had a chance to even finish drawing his breath, Roxas slapped his hands onto Riku and Sora's linked hands, splitting them apart and taking Sora's hand into his. Now, before Riku could protest Axel was already taking a hold of his hand and before the man could even mutter a word all four of them were starting in a sprint.

"What're you doing!?" Riku shouted from behind Axel, who was in front of Roxas and Sora.

"Sora is 18 now!" Axel yelled to the silverette. "He'll get arrested!"

Sora looked as if he might have cried in that moment, but instead sniffled as he stayed at pace with Roxas dragging him by the wrist. Behind them they could hear the man shouting at them to get back, and when they glanced back there were a few more people than before gathered around the two girls. They didn't turn around though; they kept running, zigzagging through alleys and turning corners until they finally ended up at the local clock tower.

With a long sigh of relief from all four of them, they finally came to a stop and caught their breath.

Riku and Sora huddled against the wall of the clock tower, not daring to go to the top as Axel had asked of them. Instead, they all stayed at ground level and decided to sit behind the tower. Roxas and Axel sat with them long enough before wandering off into the woods behind the tower. They both knew Riku would take care of Sora, he wouldn't let him go to jail. And if Namine tried to get him arrested, they would be there.

So for now; they didn't worry. The only thing on either of their minds was what Namine said earlier.

They walked silently, not looking to one another.

Roxas was still catching his breath when he asked, "Do you hate me?"

Axel was silent for a few moments, trying to recap what Namine had said. _Tell him how you fucked Demyx._ Once he remembered he silently shook his head. No, he didn't hate him – but the anger that was beginning to boil back up inside him… it didn't die down when he looked into those blue eyes, it only got worse.

"Why?" Axel mused, coming to a complete stop. Roxas halted with him and looked anywhere but those piercing eyes. "And don't give me that 'it was a mistake' bullshit – tell me the truth."

Roxas sighed, running a hand through his windblown spikes, "But it _was_ a mistake."

"Based on what?" Axel retorted. "You're no better than Namine!" Roxas's brows furrowed, and he drew a breath to retort but Axel had already cut in, raising his voice louder to keep Roxas from speaking. "You ruined my high school experience, pushed away everyone but a few true friends – and you _fucked_ those friends – and to make it even better, you talked shit about all of us because of who we were! I guess it turns out I don't have any friends, all because of you – a fucking hypocrite."

Roxas looked down, waiting for more but nothing came. Axel only found a tree and let his back slid against it until he had comfortably sat on the ground. The silence was more unsettling than the fact that what Axel had said was true, and it left Roxas will a lurching stomach.

"So why'd you do it, Rox?" Axel sighed, looking up for an answer.

"I don't know." Roxas mused before silently sitting to his knees in front of the redhead. The fact that Axel could have seen his face while he was standing made him uncomfortable, so he sat close to Axel, nearly between his legs and kept his eyes locked to the ground. When he tried to use his bangs as a shield, Axel only brushed them away and lifted Roxas's chin up with a single finger, forcing empty blue to meet desperate green.

Moments passed before Axel finally retreated his hand and let Roxas look back down.

Axel sighed. "The sun is going down."

"Yeah."

"We should go home."

Roxas hummed an affirmative sound as Axel stood and offered a hand. He glanced up just barely before taking it and letting the redhead pull him to his feet.

Axel slowly turned and began to walk away before Roxas tugged at the sleeve of his shirt.

Silently, he admitted, "He reminded me of you."

Roxas could feel Axel wince.

"_I'm_ me." Axel almost whispered. "Why didn't you just come to me?"

"Because you wouldn't want a whore like me…" Roxas pulled his hand away as Axel turned to face him. "You saw what I did, what I do…"

"And I never once judged you," Axel's voice rose. "Not like those other fucks did, and yet you went running right into their arms."

"I know." Roxas muttered.

"Why – God damn it!" Axel ran his fingers through his spikes before sighing. "I don't fucking understand you."

"Me neither."

Axel tsked. His eyes narrowed as he glared at the blonde. If something was supposed to be said, neither of them had a clue what it was. They remained silent, Roxas staring at the ground again and Axel waiting for those blue eyes to look up at him.

"Roxas," Axel took a step forward. "Look at me."

Roxas complied, looking up to meet impatient eyes.

"I kissed you 8 years ago." Axel blurted. "You made me cry on the same day." Roxas winced. "And I don't care. You fucked my best friend, _fine_. You've fucked around with all of my friends, _fine_! But stop fucking with me. Stop tugging me around, stop doing all of this shit behind my back and telling me this shit if you don't mean it."

"I do mean it!" Roxas interrupted.

"I've believed that for years – I made myself believe it!" Axel shouted back. "Why don't you fucking prove it?"

Roxas's lips formed a slight pout before his face reddened. "Because! You're too… fucking tall."

"What?"

Roxas looked away, "You're too tall… I can't… reach."

They stood in silence, and after moments Axel finally understood. When Axel's breath hitched, Roxas's face deepened a darker shade of crimson, as did Axel's.

"What if I lean over?" Axel softly asked. It was his turn to look away now as Roxas peeked from his eyelashes.

Roxas hummed a short affirmative noise and Axel took that as a signal to lean over. With his hands in his pockets, Axel did just so. He leaned over, just barely and mentally cursed himself for his face burning so hot now that Roxas was looking at him.

They were eye level, and even though the sun was shining from behind Axel and causing his features to be blackened out; Roxas could still see the red of his face matching his hair and his eyes screwed shut. He had to be as nervous – and with that thought just barely reassuring him, he drew a deep breath and captured the redheads lips.

Axel flinched at the sudden impact, but immediately became responsive in shaping his lips against Roxas's.

His hand cupped against Roxas's jawline and the other tangled in soft blonde hair while Roxas's hand fisted at Axel's chest. When Roxas tried to pull away, Axel caught his bottom lip between his teeth and stunned Roxas from moving. With a soft chuckle, he suckled the small injury he made before sliding his tongue against the bruise and between Roxas's lips.

Roxas gasped quietly, but allowed him entry; meeting him midway and took his time at tasting everything about Axel. He tasted like spice from the coffee he had earlier before graduation; sweet, spicy and warm.

And Roxas… Axel mewled when he caught taste of the sweetness of his best friend. He still tasted like the chocolates he had earlier. There was a faint hint of blood from the bite and from where Roxas had obviously bit the inside of his mouth, and for a split second it reminded him of the time he kissed him on the playground.

They pulled away after what felt like minutes and breathed against each other's glossy lips.

"Axel…" Roxas breathed.

Axel's eyes peeled open and met Roxas's. There was a slight bit of desperation in both of their eyes, to which Roxas reassured Axel with another kiss. A soft, gentle and fragile kiss that sent a thousand sparks through both of them.

"I can't make you," Axel mumbled between their short kisses. "But I can beg you."

"What?" Roxas stumbled back a bit.

"Please," Axel kissed Roxas's forehead, breathing softly against his bangs. "Please just be in love with me."

Roxas couldn't stifle his smile – and that's all Axel needed right now to smile, too.

"Take me home?" Roxas asked and Axel happily nodded before taking Roxas's hand in his.


End file.
